Chicken Roasted with Lemon and Garlic - Quick Midweek Meal Idea

Tuesday, 10 January 2012

A simple roast chicken becomes something special when it's roasted with lemon and garlic the perfect combination. But with the addition of a few herbs to the baking dish, you have a perfectly delicious midweek meal that can be conjured up in less than an hour from start to finish!

You can of course, use chicken portions (skin on) if you can't be fussed with cutting a chicken in half or simply want to feed more than two greedy people.

If you have the time, you can leave the chicken like this for an half an hour or so. Now put the chicken in a roasting tin, skin-side up and roast for about 40 to 50 minutes or until the skin is nice and golden and is cooked through. Serve with whatever takes your fancy; a nice jacket potato perhaps? Or a simple salad.

Yield: 2Author: Jan Bennett

Chicken Roasted with Lemon, Garlic and Herbs

**You can of course, use chicken portions (skin on) if you can't be fussed with cutting a chicken in half or simply want to feed more than two greedy people.

ingredients:

a smallish chicken

a few of glugs of olive oil

4 or 5 nice fat cloves of garlic - squashed (no need to peel)

2 lemons - halved

a few sprigs of thyme

a sprig of rosemary - leaves picked

a few sage leaves

salt and freshly ground black pepper

instructions

Preheat your oven to 220C/425F or Gas mark 8

Cut the chicken in half down the backbone using a large and very sharp cooks knife.

Flatten the chicken as much as you can buy pressing down with the palm of your hand.

Pour the olive oil into a large dish - enough to take the chicken, add the crushed garlic cloves and the juice from two of the lemon quarters.

Throw those in along with the other two lemon quarters.

Put in the sprigs of thyme, rosemary and sage leaves along with a good seasoning of salt and black pepper.

Turn the chicken over in the oil to coat it nicely.

If you have the time, you can leave the chicken like this for an half an hour or so.

Now put the chicken in a roasting tin, skin-side up and roast for about 40 to 50 minutes or until the skin is nice and golden and is cooked through.

Looks delicious, Jan. This is similar to one of my very favorite Nigella recipes! Also, it is worth roasting two once you have the oven on so you can make this: http://www.foodlustpeoplelove.com/2011/06/rosemary-lemon-chicken-stroganoff.html